Norfolk cat rescues struggle amid stray kitten crisis

Volunteers are pleading with pet owners to "stop the misery" after claiming rescue centres cannot cope with “hundreds of thousands of unwanted kittens”. 

Rachel Baker, a volunteer for Breckland Cats Protection based in Thetford, has saved several wild kittens over the last two weeks. 

Stray kittens have been found "half-starved, flea-ridden and with bellies full of worms" (Image: Supplied)

Hotspots for strays in the county include Attleborough, Watton and Thetford. 

"It's awash with kittens, they are everywhere,” she said. “They are born outside, homeless and struggling every day to survive." 

Last week, a family of kittens suffering from cat flu were trapped in Ellingham, near Bungay. 

READ MORE: Five kittens found living in a hole at building site

Volunteers are pleading with pet owners to stop the misery for stray kittens (Image: Supplied)

Immediate veterinary care was organised after one of the kittens suffered a rectal prolapse and needed emergency surgery. 

"It's really common with kittens born outside to suffer from malnutrition, become underweight, develop conjunctivitis or cat flu and be hugely infested with parasites”, Mrs Baker said. 

In the same week, Mrs Baker rescued a mother from an abandoned property in Attleborough, with three five-week-old kittens who were "half-starved, flea-ridden and with bellies full of worms". 

Rescue centres have warned that Norfolk towns are becoming hotspots for stray kittens (Image: Supplied)

A fourth kitten had drowned in the pond. 

"In the last week, I know of at least 14 kittens found wandering or dumped or living rough. 

"Every spring unneutered males travel miles to pursue females in heat.” 

Cats can have up to three litters a year and six kittens per litter, (Image: Supplied)

Females can have up to three litters a year and six kittens per litter, with each pregnancy lasting around nine weeks. 

The kittens become mobile at three or four weeks old and reach sexual maturity at four months. 

“What keeps me awake at night are the ones still out there,” she added. "We won't stop, we can't stop, but it does take a toll on us. 

“If people just neutered their cats, this wouldn't happen.”